


Like Magic

by myth_taken



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: F/F, Trans Girl Oz
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-09
Updated: 2016-08-09
Packaged: 2018-08-07 15:56:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7720822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myth_taken/pseuds/myth_taken
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Willow meets Oz again, much later.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Willow nodded along to the music, taking her glass off the otherwise empty table to take a sip. The club was dark, and she couldn't see the band onstage very well through the fog machine, but the music gave her a certain sense of complacency. It made her imagine Buffy sitting across from her and Xander sitting next to her, all three of them in the Bronze, listening to Oz and his band.

She watched everyone dancing, and she bounced her leg, wondering if she should be dancing too. She had worn her favorite long skirt, after all, which spun out quite pleasingly when she twirled.

Finally, she finished her drink, returned her glass, and approached the dance floor. She stepped onto it, moving slowly, waving her arms around in formations stolen from spell books. She made sure that her arms only traced harmless patterns, though, like ones for  _love_ and  _remembrance_ and  _hope_. The people around her stared, but she continued, remembering disastrous attempts at mimicking more conventional club dancing. She came closer to the stage, moving fully to the music, losing herself in it... until the song gradually faded out. The lead singer thanked everyone at the club for being such a kind audience, and the band left the stage as Willow paid her tab.

She was about to leave when she heard a voice calling her name.

"Willow?"

She turned around. "Oz?"

But in front of her was a woman, her hair down to her chest, her face cleanshaven, and wearing a skirt. 

"Sorry," she said, "I just-- I think I mistook you for someone else."

The woman shook her head. "No mistake," Oz's voice said.

" _Oz_?"

"Yup." She smiled that tiny little smile that Willow had always loved.

"You're-- you're all girl and stuff!"

"Yeah, I guess that's new for you."

"How long?"

Oz shrugged. "A few years. The band was really nice about it."

Willow started laughing. She looked at Oz's quizzical expression and explained, "Xander keeps wishing you were back so he could have another boy around! But it's like a great big joke on him, because you aren't a boy!"

"Poor Xander. But didn't you-- or Buffy--"

"I'm gay now. Or, well, I guess if you're a girl, I always was. Except for that thing with Xander, and honestly, I think I was trying to prove something to myself."

Oz was silent for a moment. "Doesn't explain Buffy, though," she said.

"Xander hates Buffy's boyfriends. Not nearly as much as he hates her girlfriend, though." 

"He doesn't still--"

"No, he's just overprotective and stubborn. And he kind of has a grudge against Faith."

"Buffy's dating Faith?" 

"Practically married, actually."

Another moment of silence. Oz closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them to her next question. "And you?"

"Oh, I'm single as... as a Pringle who doesn't have any of the other Pringles as her girlfriend," Willow answered. 

"How's your life, though? Has it been good?" 

"It's had its ups and downs. A considerable amount of downs, but when balanced with the ups, I think we're averaging an okay." Willow nodded. "Lots of vampires dead, lots of spells cast, apocalypses averted, and so on." She paused, realized Oz wasn't saying anything, and plowed forward. "I almost caused one, actually. An apocalypse. Obviously I regretted it lots after. Lots of atonement and remorse and learning to control my magic so that it never happened ever again."

Oz laughed.

"So... how's your life? Do you still go by Oz?"

"Legally, I'm Rain Osbourne, but Oz still works."

"Does everyone call you Rain now?"

"Pretty much. It turns out that when you like your first name, you don't have to resort to bad nicknames."

"I liked Oz. That wasn't a bad nickname at all."

"I know. That's why you're still allowed to use it." Oz took a step towards Willow. "Are you busy right now?"

"No." Willow gave Oz a hopeful smile. 

"Well, I've got the werewolf even more under control now. Want to talk for a bit?"

Willow's smile broke out into a full-on grin. "Of course I do!"

They left the club together, already talking as if no time had passed.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willow brings Oz to a Scooby meeting.

Willow woke up to sun streaming through her bedroom curtains and a hand running through her hair. It took her a moment to remember taking Oz back with her the night before... Oz was back! 

They had sat and talked for a while, and Willow didn't remember falling asleep, but she must have, because her head was in Oz's lap, and she had definitely just woken up. At least she had a vague memory of putting her head there. 

"You're awake," Oz said. 

"I don't remember being asleep," Willow replied. 

Oz smiled. "You were in the middle of a sentence." She was leaning back against the headboard, her hair messy and tangled. 

"Did you sleep?" 

"I dozed."

Willow sat up. "What time is it? We're having a Scooby meeting at noon."

"Scoobies still up and running, then?"

"Yep! We're more of an administrative group now, though. Not quite the fun demon hunting you remember."

"Buffy's still the Slayer, though."

"There are lots of Slayers now. Remember, I told you about that spell I did?"

"That's what it did? Wow. You've come a long way from the pencil-hovering Willow I know."

"Well, she's still in there too." Willow glanced over at her desk, and a pencil floated over to them. Oz caught it, and Willow shrugged. "See? I can still do the easy stuff." She checked her watch. "Oh, it's time for the meeting. It's just downstairs, though. Perks of sharing with Slayers. Do you want to come?"

"Sure. It'll be nice to see the gang again."

"They've missed you."

Willow led Oz down to the living room of the house she shared with Buffy, Faith, and Xander. The others, including Giles, were already there, and they all went silent when Willow came in accompanied.

Buffy was the first to speak. She was sitting on the top edge of a couch, leaning against Faith. "New girlfriend, Willow?" She said it with an air of suggestion in her tone, leaning forward to catch gossip.

"No, well, old, actually."

"What? Willow, did you hide an entire girlfriend from us?" Xander was on the other couch looking at Willow in shock.

"No, it's-- it's different."

Oz waved. "Hi."

Buffy's eyes widened. "Oz! You look so different!"

"Yeah, that's kind of the idea," she said. 

"So you're a girl?" Faith asked, jumping off the edge of the couch. "What're you going by now?"

"Uh, still Oz, actually. Legally it's Rain. Most people use Rain. But I kind of miss Oz."

"Good thing you've got us back," Buffy remarked. "How long are you around?"

"I've actually been living here for a few months," Oz said. "I was going to move on soon, but I found a band, and, well, they really need a good guitar."

"Is it Spike's?" Buffy asked. 

"A guitar can't save Spike," Willow said.

"He's asked me to play, actually," Giles added. "I declined. I can't stand modern music."

"True."

"Spike... am I missing something?"

"He has a soul. A soul which believes that the world needs a Smash Mouth cover band. In which he plays the triangle." Buffy shook her head. "The only pitched instrument they have is Dawn on kazoo."

"Hey!" Xander exclaimed. "I resent your slander."

"Xander is percussion," Willow explained. "He slams an oven door and calls it music."

"Sounds... invigorating," Oz said. "Should I be sad or glad that I haven't come across them yet?"

"I'd say glad," Giles said.

"Hm. So what else is new?"

"Beyond the extra Slayers?" Xander asked. "Not much."

"Lots of demons in this world," Faith said. "More Slayers doesn't mean less work for us."

Willow looked at Oz. "Do you want to sit down while Scooby meeting is in session?"

Oz nodded, and they both sat next to Xander on the couch. The meeting began as planned. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trans girl Faith is also a favorite headcanon of mine. Also, let's pretend Spike is still alive so I can make bad jokes about his band. Thanks to wlwbuffy on tumblr for the Spike band headcanons.

**Author's Note:**

> disclaimer: i'm not a trans woman, so if i did anything wrong in writing a trans woman please tell me


End file.
